adplus-dvertising
Connect with us

News

Trudeau to attend United Nations General Assembly amid turbulence around the world

Published

 on

NEW YORK – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to be in New York this week for the 78th meeting of the United Nations General Assembly and the Summit of the Future amid increasing geopolitical instability around the world.

“Canada will have a leading role in making the world fairer and more prosperous,” Trudeau said in a news release last week. “I look forward to working with other leaders to accelerate progress on our shared priorities and build a better future for everyone.”

While the prime minister is attending the assembly in New York until Wednesday, the Trudeau government is expected to face its first test in the House of Commons since the NDP ended its supply-and-confidence deal with the Liberals.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre plans to table a motion stating the House has no confidence in the government or the prime minister.

The New Democrats and Bloc Québécois have said they intend to vote against the Conservatives. Their votes will give Trudeau space to focus on the international gathering instead of a possible snap election at home.

The Summit of the Future, announced by UN Secretary-General António Guterres in 2021, is happening on Sunday and Monday ahead of the start of the annual meetings at the General Assembly.

Its goal is to reform the UN, reinvigorate multilateralism, and agree on solutions to new challenges at a time when the global institution has faced criticism for its handling of 21st century issues, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the war in Gaza.

Guterres urged member nations last week to compromise and approve the “Pact of the Future,” a blueprint to address a wide range of global challenges. But there’s been pushback from Russia, Saudi Arabia and other countries who object to some of the language around things like climate change and reforming international financial institutions.

Trudeau is scheduled to meet with Guterres Sunday. Trudeau is also to speak with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Kathy Hochul, New York State’s Democratic governor, earlier in the day.

“While diplomacy is hard and diplomacy about diplomacy is even harder, we can do hard things,” said Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, on Wednesday.

“We can think beyond what has been, push ourselves to create a system that meets this moment and the opportunities of the future.”

Thomas-Greenfield said the Biden administration supports changes to the makeup of the UN Security Council to make it more inclusive by creating two permanent seats for Africans and a new elected seat for small island developing states.

Canada has been active at the UN since it was created in 1945 and helped draft the UN Charter.

Trudeau, who is co-chair of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Advocates group, will reaffirm Canada’s commitment to its 2030 Agenda, a 15-year global framework adopted in 2015 that envisions a secure world free of poverty and hunger, with equal education and universal health coverage as well as other lofty goals.

Trudeau will also co-host a discussion with Haiti’s acting prime minister, Garry Conille, about “solutions that are Haitian-led,” the news release said.

Canada is closely invested in Haiti’s response to the ongoing humanitarian, security and political crises. A UN report released in June said surging gang activity had displaced nearly 580,000 people in the Caribbean country since March.

While at the assembly, Trudeau will also co-host an event with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen about climate change, carbon pricing and industrial decarbonization.

Pressing geopolitical challenges and the conflict in the Middle East will cast a shadow over the assembly and its formidable future plans.

Canada abstained last week from a high-profile UN vote demanding that Israel end its “unlawful presence” in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank within a year.

The State of Palestine brought the non-binding motion, which passed 124-14; Canada was among 43 abstentions. The United States voted against it.

“We cannot support a resolution where one party, the State of Israel, is held solely responsible for the conflict,” Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, told the General Assembly last Wednesday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is also set to address a special meeting of the UN Security Council on Tuesday about Russia’s ongoing invasion, Thomas-Greenfield said.

Russia has a permanent seat on the Security Council and it has been resoundingly criticized over its aggression in Ukraine being a violation of the UN Charter.

“We intend to keep the pressure on Russia,” said Thomas-Greenfield.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 22, 2024.

— With files from Dylan Robertson in Ottawa and The Associated Press



Source link

Continue Reading

News

Fall storm could bring ‘hurricane force’ winds to B.C.

Published

 on

VANCOUVER – Environment Canada is warning about an intensifying storm that is expected to bring powerful winds to Vancouver Island and the British Columbia coast this week.

Matt MacDonald, the lead forecaster for the BC Wildfire Service, says models predict “explosive cyclogenesis,” which is also known as a bomb cyclone, materializing Tuesday night.

Such storms are caused by a rapid drop in atmospheric pressure at the centre of a storm system that results in heavy rain and high winds.

MacDonald says in a social media post that B.C. coastal inlets could see “hurricane force” winds of more than 118 km/h and create waves up to nine metres off Washington and Oregon.

Environment Canada posted a special weather statement saying the storm will develop off the coast of Vancouver Island on Tuesday, bringing high winds and heavy rain to some areas starting in the afternoon.

It says the weather system may cause downed trees, travel delays and power outages, adding that peak winds are expected for most areas Tuesday night, though the severe weather is likely to continue into Wednesday.

B.C. has been hit by a series of powerful fall storms, including an atmospheric river that caused flash flooding in Metro Vancouver in mid-October.

A lightning storm overnight and early Monday covered parts of Metro Vancouver in hail.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 18, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



Source link

Continue Reading

News

CBP Announces New Hours for Border Crossing Locations

Published

 on

CHAMPLAIN, N.Y. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in collaboration with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), will adjust hours of operation for 38 ports of entry (POEs) along the U.S. northern border, beginning at midnight, Jan. 6, 2025.

This will allow CBP to enhance border security while facilitating legitimate cross-border trade and travel. CBP officers will be deployed to busier ports of entry, enabling the agency to use its resources most effectively for its critical national security and border security missions.

These adjustments formalize current operating hours that have been in effect for more than four years at 13 ports of entry across the northern border, with eight ports of entry expanding hours. A small number of ports will see reduced hours in an effort to continually align resources to operational realities. Travelers who use these affected crossing locations will have other options within a reasonable driving distance.

Importantly, these adjustments have been made in close coordination with CBSA, to ensure aligned operational hours that further enhance the security of both countries.

CBP continually monitors operations, traffic patterns and volume, and analyzes the best use of resources to better serve the traveling public. CBP will remain engaged with local and regional stakeholders, as well as communities to ensure consistent communication and to address concerns.

The vast majority of the 118 northern border ports of entry will continue to operate at existing hours, including many with 24/7 operations. Locate ports of entry and access border wait times here.

The following are the new permanent POE hours of operation for select New York POEs:

  • Chateauguay, NY                 new hours of operation – 6 am to 6 pm
  • Trout River, NY                   new hours of operation – 6 am to 6 pm
  • Rouses Point, NY                 new hours of operation – 8 am to 8 pm
  • Overton Corners, NY            new hours of operation – 6 am to 10 pm

Again, these changes will go into effect beginning at midnight, January 6, 2025.

Below is a listing of each location with the closest border crossing that will remain open 24/7 for appropriate commercial and passenger traffic:

  • Chateauguay, NY –                closest 24/7 port: Fort Covington – 27 miles
  • Trout River, NY –                   closest 24/7 port: Fort Covington – 11 miles
  • Rouses Point, NY –                closest 24/7 port: Champlain – 8 miles
  • Overton Corners, NY –           closest 24/7 port: Champlain – 5 miles

For additional information or to contact a port of entry, please visit CBP.gov.

Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @CBPBuffalo and @DFOBuffalo

For more on Customs and Border Protection’s mission at our nation’s ports of entry with CBP officers and along U.S. borders with Border Patrol agents, please visit the Border Security section of the CBP website.

Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @CBPBuffalo @DFOBuffalo and @USBPChiefBUN

Continue Reading

News

Man police linked to neo-Nazi group pleads not guilty to terrorism charges

Published

 on

OTTAWA – An Ottawa man is pleading not guilty to charges of terrorism and hate-speech related to the promotion of a far-right group.

RCMP charged Patrick Gordon Macdonald in July 2023, alleging he took part in activities of a listed terrorist organization.

It’s the first case in Canada where the government laid charges for both terrorism and hate propaganda against someone for promoting a violent, far-right ideology.

As the trial opened Monday in Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice, Crown prosecutors alleged Macdonald helped produce propaganda for the Atomwaffen Division, an international neo-Nazi organization Canada listed as a terror group in 2021.

Prosecutors alleged he aided in the production of three propaganda videos designed to recruit new members and incite hatred against Jews.

The allegations have not yet been proven in court.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 18, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending